1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a retarder which is part of a drive assembly, notably for vehicles and specifically in conjunction with an internal combustion engine and a transmission.
2. Description of the Related Art
A drive unit with a retarder and a transmission is known from German Patent Document DE 44 40 165 A1.
Owing to their particular properties, hydrodynamic retarders are recently being increasingly employed. Their operation involves neither wear nor fatigue, enabling them to reliably retard vehicles with large masses on longer grade stretches.
Vehicle manufacturers insist on a maximally compact design of the individual units of drive assemblies. Besides, easier and faster assembly and disassembly of the individual units is desirable, both for purposes of first assembly and also service work. This is true particularly for the retarder.
German Patent Document DE 38 37 142 A1 shows and describes a retarder which, as a self-contained assembly, can be installed from outside in a housing of a change-speed gearbox. While this occasions a certain simplification over other retarders, this prior retarder, however, is not optimal with respect to its manufacture and the space needed.